Drone Buying Guide (For Beginners)

For some people, drones are a part of their lives and business. But for some others, however, they are just getting to hear about it or may have never heard of it before. Whether you are getting to know about them or use them regularly, you may have to use a quad anytime soon. If you are in doubt of how they could be of use to you, read more about them here.

Let’s say you finally decided to buy one of these flying robots, what are those things you must consider before proceeding with the purchase? In this article, we provide you with a list of the most important features of drones which every standard one of them must have.

Drone Buying Guide – Things to Remember

1. Durability

Never make the mistake of buying a quad that cannot stand the test of time no matter how cheap they seem to be. You are better off with none than one that gets broken at every given opportunity. The reason is simple. Drones often crash to the earth as a result of one reason or the other – especially when their batteries die in midair. For this purpose, stick to the ones made with carbon fiber or any other similar tough material. This way, your toy will survive the almost inevitable crash.

2. Flight Time

Drones are not helicopters or airplanes. They are a relatively new invention which scientists are working hard to perfect. The one aspect of these machines that have not developed that much is the flight time.The technology that will make them hover in the air for hours has simply not existed yet. But all hope is not lost. You can find drones that can 20 to 30 minutes non-stop at a time. The DJI Phantom series has proven to be very reliable with flight times of between 25 and 30 minutes. But whether you decide to buy from the biggest names in the industry or newcomers, stick to the ones with a longer flight time.

3. Availability of Spare Parts

Now, this is where many first time users make a mistake. There is one reason log time users stick to popular names in the industry. This reason is the ready availability of spare parts in the market. In the event that a part of your drone breaks off or gets worse, you will need to find a replacement. While some manufacturers will provide some extra parts when you purchase your drone from them, others do not. But what is important is not whether they include a few extra parts or not. What really counts is whether you can find a replacement in the market when the need arises.

4. Features

Every day, new features join the old already impressive packages these flying machines come with. You need to know these features to be able to choose the drone that matches your needs. Before looking for extra perks and features, there are basic ones every true drone must have:

4.1 The Headless Mode

A drone’s head gives it the direction by determining where it flies to. For earlier models, this was a limitation but in recent times, it is possible to have your drone fly to any direction feature allows your drone to move in any direction. This is what the headless mode is all about. Like a football, it rolls where it is directed sign any and every part of the machine can now serve as its head; this is what the headless mode is all about, and you can activate it with just a simple push on the button.

4.2 One-Key Return

This feature is indispensable to beginners in every aspect. The first few hours after purchasing your drone is usually spent familiarizing yourself with the machine. As you study your machine, you will likely have it run into an obstruction or have it crash somewhere. When doom is impending, your best bet is to activate the one key return which will bring your machine right back to where the flight started. To complete this move, the inbuilt GPS that many recent drones come with allow the machine to locate its take-off point. Even pro users make use of this feature to arrange a programme flight.

4.3 Auto Taking Off&Landing

If you need to periodically monitor an area or an event, you will really need this feature. With a push of a few buttons, you can make your machine take-off from the ground, fly to the designated locations and return to the ground. This is completely different from the one key return feature. While the one key return brings your machine back to where it started from wherever it is in the air, the auto take-off and landing feature pilot your drone without your effort.

5. In a Nutshell

If money is not a factor for you, go for the most recent drones as they often come with the most sophisticated features. But even with a low budget, you can still find some very awesome ones that cost just a few hundred bucks.